Energy conversion architecture with secondary side control delivered across transformer element

ABSTRACT

A switched mode power converter is configured having predominate secondary side control. A primary side driving circuit is configured as a responsive state machine the output of which is input as the driving signal for a main switch. An output voltage, current or power is sensed and the secondary side controller compares the sensed output characteristic with a predefined reference. The comparison results in an error that signifies an amount that the output is out of regulation. The secondary side controller drives a secondary side switch to generate a voltage pulse across the secondary winding. The voltage pulse has a pulse width that represents the amount of error in the output characteristic. The voltage pulse is transmitted across the transformer and received by the primary side driving circuit, which generates a driving signal modulated according to the voltage pulse and drives the main switch to regulate the output characteristic.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This Patent Application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (e) of the co-pending U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/683,643, filed Aug. 15, 2012, and entitled “Reconstruction Pulse Shape Integrity in Feedback Environment and the Bidirectional Energy Conversion Architecture” and the co-pending U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/793,099, filed Mar. 15, 2013, and entitled “New Power Management Integrated Circuit Partitioning”. This application incorporates U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/683,643 and U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/793,099 in their entireties by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is generally directed to the field of power converters. More specifically, the present invention is directed to controlling a power converter.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In many applications a power converter is required to provide a voltage within a predetermined range formed from a voltage source having a different voltage level. Some circuits are subject to uncertain and undesirable functioning and even irreparable damage if supplied power falls outside a certain range. More specifically, in some applications, a precise amount of power is required at known times. This is referred to as regulated power supply.

In order to control a power converter to deliver a precise amount of power as conditions require, some form of control of the power converter is required. This control can occur on the primary side of an isolation transformer or the secondary side. A closed loop feedback control system is a system that monitors some element in the circuit, such as the circuit output voltage, and its tendency to change, and regulates that element at a substantially constant value. Control on the secondary side of a power converter can use a monitored output voltage as feedback control, but requires the use of some communication from the secondary to the primary side of the isolation transformer to control the primary side switching element. Control on the primary side can readily control the primary side switching element, but requires some feedback mechanism from the secondary side to the primary side to convey the status of the monitored element. In some applications, an optical coupler circuit, or opto coupler, is used to transmit feedback signals while maintaining electrical isolation between the primary and secondary sides.

FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional regulated switch mode power converter including an optical coupler circuit. The power converter 2 is configured as a traditional flyback type converter. The power converter 2 includes an isolation transformer 4 having a primary winding P1 and a secondary winding S1. The primary winding P1 is electrically coupled to an input voltage Vin and a driving circuit including a transistor 8, a resistor 12, and a controller 10. A capacitor 28 is coupled across the input Vin and coupled with the primary winding P1. Input voltage to the circuit may be unregulated DC voltage derived from an AC supply after rectification and filtering. The transistor 8 is a fast-switching device, such as a MOSFET, the switching of which is controlled by the fast dynamic controller 10 to maintain a desired output voltage Vout. The controller 10 is coupled to the gate of the transistor 8. As is well known, the DC/DC conversion from the primary winding P1 to the secondary winding S1 is determined by the duty cycle of the PWM switching signal provided to the transistor 8. The secondary winding voltage is rectified and filtered using the diode 6 and the capacitor 22. A sensing circuit and a load 14 are coupled in parallel to the secondary winding S1 via the diode 6. The sensing circuit includes resistor 16, resistor 18, and a secondary controller 20. A secondary controller 20 senses the output voltage Vout across the load.

In this configuration, the power converter is controlled by driving circuitry on the primary side, and the load coupled to the output is isolated from the control. As such, a monitored output voltage used for voltage regulation is required as feedback from the secondary side to the control on the primary side. The power converter 2 has a voltage regulating circuit that includes the secondary controller 20 and an optical coupler circuit. The optical coupled circuit includes two galvanically isolated components, an optical diode 24 coupled to the secondary controller 20 and an optical transistor 26 coupled to the controller 10. The optical diode 24 provides optical communication with the optical transistor 26 across the isolation barrier formed by the transformer 4. The optical coupler circuit in cooperation with the secondary controller 20 provides feedback to the controller 10. The controller 10 accordingly adjusts the duty cycle of the transistor 8 to compensate for any variances in an output voltage Vout.

However, the use of an optical coupler circuit in and of itself presents issues. Firstly, the optical coupler circuit adds extra cost. In some applications, the optical coupler circuit can add more cost to the power converter than the isolation transformer. The optical coupler circuit also adds to manufacturing and testing costs. Furthermore, the performance of the optical coupler circuit degrades over time and therefore introduces another potential point of failure in the overall power converter. Also, characteristics of the optical coupler circuit must be accounted for in the overall circuit design. For example, the optical diode component is non-linear and as such a correlation between the optical diode and the optical transistor must be established. The optical coupler circuit also has delays related to the operation of the optical diode and the optical transistor, and the operation of the optical diode requires a well defined DC level. As a result, it is generally desirable to avoid the use of an optical coupler circuit.

A next generation of feedback control does not use optical control circuitry. Instead, the transformer is used to convey real-time feedback signaling from the secondary side to the primary side. In such an application, the transformer includes an auxiliary winding on the primary side that is magnetically coupled to the secondary winding. FIG. 2 illustrates a conventional regulated power converter including a magnetically coupled feedback circuit. The power converter 32 is configured as a traditional flyback type converter. The power converter 32 includes an isolation transformer 34 having a primary winding P1 and a secondary winding S1. The primary winding P1 is electrically coupled to an input voltage Vin and a driving circuit including a transistor 44, a resistor 46, and a controller 42. A capacitor 58 is coupled across the input Vin and coupled with the primary winding P1. Input voltage to the circuit may be unregulated DC voltage derived from an AC supply after rectification and filtering. Similar to the power converter in FIG. 1, the transistor 44 is a fast-switching device controlled by the fast dynamic controller 42 to maintain a desired output voltage Vout. The secondary winding voltage is rectified and filtered using the diode 36 and the capacitor 38, with the output voltage Vout delivered to the load 40.

The power converter 32 has a feedback loop that includes a magnetically coupled feedback circuit coupled to the secondary winding S1 of the transformer 34 and the controller 42. The magnetically coupled feedback circuit includes a diode 48, a capacitor 50, resistors 52 and 54 and an auxiliary winding 56. The auxiliary winding 56 is coupled in parallel to the series of resistors 52 and 54.

The voltage VA is proportional to the voltage across the auxiliary winding 56. The voltage VA is provided as a feedback voltage VFB to the controller 42. The current through the transistor 44 is also provided as feedback current IFB to the controller 42. The controller 42 includes a real-time waveform analyzer that analyzes input feedback signals, such as the feedback voltage VFB and the feedback current IFB.

The auxiliary winding 56 is also magnetically coupled to the secondary winding S1. When the current through the diode 36 is zero, the voltage across the secondary winding S1 is equal to the voltage across the auxiliary winding 56. This relationship provides means for communicating the output voltage Vout as feedback to the primary side of the circuit. The voltage across the auxiliary winding 56 is measured when it is determined that the current through the diode 36 is zero, which provides a measure of the voltage across the secondary winding S1 and therefore the output voltage Vout.

The feedback voltage VFB when the diode 36 current is zero is determined and is referred to as the “voltage sense”, and the feedback current IFB when the diode 36 current is zero is determined and is referred to as the “current sense”. The voltage sense and the current sense are input to the real-time waveform analyzer within the controller 42. FIG. 3 illustrates a functional block diagram of a conventional real-time waveform analyzer 60. Error amplifiers 62 and 64 are acceptors of the regulating means, which in this configuration are the sensed voltage and the sensed current. The error amplifier compares the input sensed voltage to a reference voltage and outputs a first difference value. The first difference value is amplified by the gain of the error amplifier 62. The error amplifier 64 compares the amplified first difference value to the sensed current and outputs a second difference value that is either High or Low. A pulse width modulation (PWM) block 66 is configured as a Flip-Flop digital device. The output of the PWM block 66 is set according to the switching frequency of the clock 68 and is Reset by the High or Low value input from the error amplifier 64. The variable signal applied to the Reset pin generates an output signal that is a pulse train modulated by the pulse width. A multiple input OR gate 70 inputs the clock signal, the pulse train signal, a shutdown signal, and a OVP/UVP/OTP signal, where OVP stands for “over voltage protection”, UVP stands for “undervoltage protection” and OTP stands for “over temperature protection”. The waveform analyzer is configured to output a high voltage value when one of the inputs to the OR gate is high or to output a low voltage value when all of the inputs to the OR gate are low. The high voltage value output from the waveform analyzer corresponds to turning on the transistor 44 in FIG. 2. The low voltage value corresponds to turning off the transistor 44. The OR gate also enables a high voltage signal output from the PWM block 66 to propagate to the output by monitoring abnormal conditions such as under voltage, over voltage, over temperature, etc. In this manner, the pulse width of each pulse can be modified which adjusts the output voltage into regulation.

In general, control intricacies of the waveform analyzer are aligned with control argument sampling to achieve overall system functional performance. Sampling argument is in the form of current, voltage and impedance. System functional performance is in the form of pulse width modulation (PWM), pulse frequency modulation (PFM) and pulse amplitude modulation (PAM). The waveform analyzer of FIG. 3 is limited to signal processing in DC or real-time switching waveforms. In either case, the feedback signal received by the waveform analyzer requires some status integrity, such as no noise on the DC level, no disturbance on the switching waveform and to some degree represent a combination of analog and digital representations. The voltage across the auxiliary winding typically forms a pulse train with frequency corresponding to the switching frequency of the driving transistor. The voltage across the auxiliary winding when the secondary winding current is zero, which corresponds to the diode 36 current equaling zero, corresponds to the falling edge of the pulse. As such, measuring an accurate voltage value requires that the pulse is well defined with sufficient pulse integrity particularly at the falling edge. Further, the voltage value immediately following the rising edge includes ringing due to the leakage impedance of the transformer. As such, pulse integrity also requires sufficient time for the voltage value to stabilize following the rising edge. Higher switching frequencies minimize the pulse width and therefore provide less time for voltage stabilization. For at least these reasons, providing a pulse with sufficient pulse integrity is often difficult to achieve.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A switched mode power converter is configured having predominate secondary side control. In some embodiments, a primary side driving circuit is configured as a responsive state machine, such as a pulse width modulating (PWM) circuit, the output of which is input as the driving signal for a main switch. One or more output characteristics, such as output voltage, current or power, are sensed, and the secondary side controller compares the sensed output characteristic(s) with a predefined reference. The comparison results in a difference, or an error, that signifies an amount that the output is out of regulation. The secondary side controller drives a secondary side switch so as to generate a negative secondary current through a secondary winding, which results in a voltage pulse across the secondary winding. The secondary side switch is driven so as to form a voltage pulse having a pulse width that represents the amount of error in the output characteristic. The pulse width fluctuates according to the error value. The voltage pulse is transmitted across the transformer and received by the primary side driving circuit, which generates a driving signal modulated according to the voltage pulse and drives the main switch to regulate the output characteristic.

In an aspect, a method of controlling a switching mode power converter is disclosed. The method includes configuring a switching mode power converter. The power converter includes a transformer, an output circuit coupled to a secondary winding of the transformer, a first switch coupled to a primary winding of the transformer and a driving circuit coupled to the first switch. The output circuit includes a second switch coupled to the secondary winding of the transformer and a controller coupled to the second switch. The method also includes measuring an output characteristic of the output circuit. The method also includes generating a driving signal by the controller and applying the driving signal to the second switch. The driving signal is modulated based on the measured output characteristic, and applying the driving signal to the second switch results in a voltage pulse across the secondary winding. The voltage pulse includes a pulse width that corresponds to a magnitude of an out of regulation output characteristic. The method also includes transmitting the voltage pulse through the transformer to the driving circuit and modulating a driving signal generated by the driving circuit according to the voltage pulse. The method also includes driving the first switch using the driving signal to regulate the output characteristic.

The method can also include determining for each switching cycle of the power converter when a power delivery from a primary side of the transformer to the output circuit is completed, and when the power delivery is completed then generating the driving signal and transmitting the voltage pulse. The power delivery can be completed when a current through the secondary winding drops to zero. The power delivery from the primary side to the output circuit can correspond to the first switch being OFF, and generating the driving signal and transmitting the voltage pulse can be performed while the first switch is OFF. The driving circuit can include a pulse width modulation circuit and the driving signal can be a pulse width modulated voltage signal. The voltage pulse received by the pulse width modulation circuit can modulate a duty cycle of the pulse width modulated voltage signal output from the pulse width modulation circuit. The output characteristic can be one or more of an output voltage, an output current, and an output power of the power converter. The voltage pulse can be formed across the secondary winding while the second switch is ON which enables a negative secondary current through the secondary winding. Enabling the negative secondary current can include enabling an alternative current path from an output capacitor in the output circuit to the secondary winding. The secondary winding can be magnetically coupled to an auxiliary winding, and the auxiliary winding can be coupled to the driving circuit, further wherein transmitting the voltage pulse can include using the magnetic coupling between the secondary winding and the auxiliary winding to transmit the voltage pulse from the secondary winding to the driving circuit. Transmitting the voltage pulse can include using a parasitic capacitance between a primary side and a secondary side of the power converter. The parasitic capacitance can be a parasitic capacitance of the transformer. The parasitic capacitance can be an inherent capacitance of a printed circuit board onto which the power converter is assembled, wherein the inherent capacitance is a result of a component layout on either side of an isolation galvanic barrier. The first switch can be a first transistor and the second switch can be a second transistor.

In another aspect, a switching mode power converter is disclosed. The power converter includes a transformer, a first switch, a driving circuit, a second switch, a controller, and a sensing circuit. The transformer has a primary winding coupled to an input supply voltage and a secondary winding. The first switch is coupled in series to the primary winding. The driving circuit is coupled to the switch, wherein the driving circuit is configured to drive the first switch ON and OFF. The second switch is coupled in series to the secondary winding. The controller is coupled to the second switch, wherein the second controller is configured to turn the second switch ON and OFF. The sensing circuit is coupled to the secondary winding and the controller, wherein the sensing circuit is configured to sense an output characteristic of the power converter. The controller is configured to generate a second switch driving signal and apply the second switch driving signal to the second switch. The second switch driving signal is modulated based on the measured output characteristic, and applying the second switch driving signal to the second switch results in a voltage pulse across the secondary winding. The voltage pulse includes a pulse width that corresponds to a magnitude of an out of regulation output characteristic. The transformer is configured as a signal transmitter to transmit the voltage pulse from the secondary winding to a primary side of the transformer. The driving circuit is configured to generate a first switch driving signal modulated according to the voltage pulse and to drive the first switch using the first switch driving signal to regulate the output characteristic.

The controller and the sensing circuit can be configured to determine for each switching cycle of the power converter when a power delivery from a primary side of the transformer to the output circuit is completed, and when the power delivery is completed then the controller is configured to generate the second switch driving signal. The power delivery can be completed when a current through the secondary winding drops to zero. The power delivery from the primary side to the output circuit can correspond to the first switch being OFF, and the controller can be configured to generate the driving signal while the first switch is OFF. The driving circuit can be a pulse width modulation circuit and the driving signal can be a pulse width modulated voltage signal. The pulse width modulation circuit can be configured to modulate a duty cycle of the pulse width modulated voltage signal output from the pulse width modulation circuit based on the received voltage pulse. The output characteristic can be one or more of an output voltage, an output current, and an output power of the power converter. The power converter can also include an auxiliary winding coupled to the driving circuit, wherein the auxiliary winding is magnetically coupled to the secondary winding. The transformer can be configured to transmit the voltage pulse from the secondary winding to the auxiliary winding using the magnetic coupling between the secondary winding and the auxiliary winding. The transformer can be configured to transmit the voltage pulse from the secondary winding to the auxiliary winding using a parasitic capacitance between a primary side and a secondary side of the power converter. The parasitic capacitance can be a parasitic capacitance of the transformer. The parasitic capacitance can be an inherent capacitance of a printed circuit board onto which the power converter is assembled, wherein the inherent capacitance is a result of a component layout on either side of an isolation galvanic barrier. The first switch can be a first transistor and the second switch can be a second transistor. The sensing circuit can include a voltage divider circuit. The power converter can also include a diode coupled in parallel to the second switch and an output capacitor coupled in series to the diode, wherein the diode is configured to enable current flow from the secondary winding to the output capacitor when forward-biased. When the second switch is ON, an alternative current path can be formed between the output capacitor and the secondary winding of the transformer, further wherein a negative secondary current flows from the output capacitor to the secondary winding via the alternative current path, thereby forming the voltage pulse across the secondary winding. The negative secondary current can be generated as discharge from the output capacitor when the alternative current path is formed. The power converter can be configured as one of a flyback-type power converter circuit, a forward-type power converter circuit, a push-pull-type power converter circuit, a half-bridge-type power converter circuit, and a full-bridge-type power converter circuit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Several example embodiments are described with reference to the drawings, wherein like components are provided with like reference numerals. The example embodiments are intended to illustrate, but not to limit, the invention. The drawings include the following figures:

FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional regulated switch mode power converter including an optical coupler circuit.

FIG. 2 illustrates a conventional regulated power converter including a magnetically coupled feedback circuit.

FIG. 3 illustrates a functional block diagram of a conventional real-time waveform analyzer.

FIG. 4 illustrates a power converter according to an embodiment.

FIG. 5 illustrates a functional block diagram of a portion of the controller for processing the coded voltage pulse train according to an embodiment.

FIG. 6 illustrates a power converter according to another embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present application are directed to a power converter. Those of ordinary skill in the art will realize that the following detailed description of the power converter is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. Other embodiments of the power converter will readily suggest themselves to such skilled persons having the benefit of this disclosure.

Reference will now be made in detail to implementations of the power converter as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The same reference indicators will be used throughout the drawings and the following detailed description to refer to the same or like parts. In the interest of clarity, not all of the routine features of the implementations described herein are shown and described. It will, of course, be appreciated that in the development of any such actual implementation, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made in order to achieve the developer's specific goals, such as compliance with application and business related constraints, and that these specific goals will vary from one implementation to another and from one developer to another. Moreover, it will be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time-consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking of engineering for those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates a power converter according to an embodiment. The power converter 100 is configured to receive an unregulated DC voltage signal at an input node Vin and to provide a regulated output voltage Vout. Input voltage to the circuit may be unregulated DC voltage derived from an AC supply after rectification. The input voltage is typically filtered, such as via capacitor 102.

The power converter 100 is configured as a flyback converter. It is understood that the concepts described herein can be applied to alternatively configured switched mode converters including, but not limed to, a forward converter, a push-pull converter, a half-bridge converter, and a full-bridge converter. The power converter 100 includes an isolation transformer 104 having a primary winding P1 and a secondary winding S1. The primary winding P1 is electrically coupled to the input voltage Vin and a driving circuit including a switch 106, a sense resistor 112, and a controller 110. The switch 106 is coupled in series with the primary winding P1 of the transformer 104 and the sense resistor 112. The controller 110 is coupled to the switch 106 to turn the switch ON and OFF.

The power converter 100 further includes output circuitry coupled to the secondary winding S1 of the transformer 104. The output circuitry includes a freewheeling rectifier diode 116, a switch 118, a controller 120, and an output capacitor 126. The switch 118 is coupled in parallel to the diode 116. An anode of the diode 116 is coupled to a first terminal of the secondary winding. A cathode of the diode 116 is coupled to a first terminal of the output capacitor 126 and coupled to the output node Vout. The output capacitor 126 is coupled to the Vout node across an output load, represented by a resistor 128. The controller 120 is coupled to the switch 118 to turn the switch ON and OFF. The output circuitry also includes a sensing circuit configured to measure a circuit characteristic to be regulated such as an output voltage, an output current, and/or an output power. In this exemplary configuration and succeeding description, the power circuit is described as sensing and regulating the output voltage Vout. In the exemplary configuration of FIG. 2, the sensing circuit includes a resistive voltage divider including the resistors 122 and 124 coupled in parallel to the capacitor 126 to measure a voltage across the capacitor 126. It is understood that an alternative sensing circuit can be used to measure the output voltage Vout. In general, the sensing circuit can be configured to use any conventional technique for determining the value of the regulated circuit characteristic.

The switch 106 and the switch 118 are each a suitable switching device. In an exemplary embodiment, the switch 106 and the auxiliary switch 118 are each a n-type metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) device. Alternatively, any other semiconductor switching device known to a person of skill in the art can be substituted for the switch 106 and/or the switch 118. Subsequent description is based on an n-channel MOSFET.

The power converter 100 has a feedback loop that includes a magnetically coupled feedback circuit coupled to the secondary winding S1 of the transformer 104 and the controller 110. The magnetically coupled feedback circuit includes a diode 108, a capacitor 130, resistors 132 and 134 and an auxiliary winding 114. The auxiliary winding 114 is coupled in parallel to the series of resistors 132 and 134. The auxiliary winding 114 is also magnetically coupled to the secondary winding S1. When the current through the diode 116 is zero, the voltage across the secondary winding S1 is equal to the voltage across the auxiliary winding 114 if the turns ratio is 1:1, or otherwise proportional depending on the turns ratio. This relationship provides means for communicating the voltage across the secondary winding S1 as feedback to the primary side of the circuit. The value of the voltage across the secondary winding S1 is a function of the secondary current through the secondary winding S1. With the current through the diode 116 equal to zero, the transistor 118 is selectively turned ON and OFF by the controller 120. When the transistor 118 is ON, an alternative current path is formed from the charged capacitor 126 to the secondary winding S1. The alternative current path enables negative current flow through the secondary winding S1. In this manner, the controller 120 generates a driving signal that selectively turns the transistor 1180N and OFF, thereby generating a coded train of voltage pulses across the secondary winding S1. The driving signal is configured such that the voltage pulses are modulated with coded information. In this manner, a coded voltage pulse train is transmitted during a delay period that corresponds to the switch 106 OFF and the secondary winding current having dropped to zero.

In some embodiments, the coded information is the measured output circuit characteristic that is to be regulated, such as the output voltage Vout. In this case, the controller 120 receives the sensed output voltage Vout, and generates a driving signal resulting in a modulated train of voltage pulses across the secondary winding S1 that is coded to conveys the sensed output voltage Vout. In this manner, a coded signal is generated in the form of a coded voltage pulse train, where the DC level of the measured output voltage Vout is coded into the coded signal. Coded information is included in the coded pulse train by modulating pulses of the pulse train including, but no limited to, the pulse width, the pulse amplitude, the pulse frequency, or any combination thereof. For example, the pulse train can be modulated by the number of pulses over a predetermined time period, or the number of pulses with different amplitudes over the time period.

The auxiliary winding 114 is magnetically coupled to the secondary winding S1, and the voltage across the auxiliary winding 114 is equal to or proportional to the voltage across the secondary winding S1 when the current through the diode 116 is zero. As such, the coded voltage pulse train is transmitted from across the isolation galvanic barrier via the magnetically coupled auxiliary winding 114 and secondary winding S1.

The coded voltage pulse train across the auxiliary winding 114 is measured when the transistor 106 is OFF and the current through the diode 116 equals zero. The voltage VA is proportional to the voltage across the auxiliary winding 114 and therefore represents the coded voltage pulse train. The voltage VA is provided as a feedback voltage VFB to the controller 110, wherein the feedback voltage VFB represents the coded voltage pulse train. In contrast to the conventional power converter of FIG. 2 where the feedback voltage VFB is a single pulse per switching cycle of the main transistor 44, the feedback voltage VFB input to the controller 110 is a train of pulses per switching cycle of the main transistor 106. The train of pulses includes the coded information that identifies the measured output voltage Vout, again in contrast to the conventional power converter of FIG. 2 where the single pulse represents the actual output voltage Vout.

The controller 110 is configured to receive the feedback voltage FB. The current through the transistor 106 is also provided as feedback current IFB to the controller 110. The controller 110 includes a real-time waveform analyzer that analyzes input feedback signals, such as the feedback voltage VFB and the feedback current IFB. FIG. 5 illustrates a functional block diagram of a portion of the controller 110 for processing the coded voltage pulse train according to an embodiment. The feedback voltage VFB input to the controller 110 is received by a pulse train acceptor 140. The pulse train acceptor is a digital filter element, such as a high pass filter, that filters the received coded voltage pulse train. The filtered signal output from the pulse train acceptor 140 is input to a signal integrity discriminator 142 where the signal is decoded and the measured output voltage Vout coded into the coded voltage pulse train is identified. The signal integrity discriminator 142 generates and outputs a driving signal that corresponds to the identified output voltage Vout. The driving signal is input to a digital to analog converter 144 and converted to a corresponding DC level.

The DC level output from the converter 144 is input to the waveform analyzer 146 as the “voltage sense”. The feedback current IFB is input to the waveform analyzer as the “current sense”. The voltage sense is provided as a first input to an error amplifier 148. The current sense is provided as a first input to the error amplifier 150. Error amplifiers 148 and 150 are acceptors of the regulating means, which in this configuration are the voltage sense and the current sense. The error amplifier 148 compares the input voltage sense to a reference voltage and outputs a first difference value. The first difference value is amplified by the gain of the error amplifier 148. The error amplifier 150 compares the amplified first difference value to the current sense and outputs a second difference value that is either High or Low. A pulse width modulation (PWM) block 152 is configured as a Flip-Flop digital device. The output of the PWM block 152 is set according to the switching frequency of the clock 154 and is Reset by the High or Low value input from the error amplifier 150. The variable signal applied to the Reset pin generates an output signal that is a pulse train modulated by the pulse width. A multiple input OR gate 156 inputs the clock signal, the pulse train signal, a shutdown signal, and a OVP/UVP/OTP signal. The OR gate 156 outputs a high voltage value when one of the inputs to the OR gate is high or to output a low voltage value when all of the inputs to the OR gate are low. The output of the OR gate 156 is amplified by amplifier 158 and output to drive the gate of the transistor 106 (FIG. 4). The high voltage value output from the OR gate 156 corresponds to turning ON the transistor 106 in FIG. 4. The low voltage value output from the OR gate 156 corresponds to turning OFF the transistor 106. The OR gate 156 also enables a high voltage value to propagate to the output by monitoring abnormal conditions such as under voltage, over voltage, over temperature, etc. In this manner, the pulse width of each pulse output from the PWM block 152 can be modified to adjust the output voltage into regulation.

In general, control intricacies of the waveform analyzer are aligned with control argument sampling to achieve overall system functional performance. Sampling argument is in the form of current, voltage and impedance. System functional performance is in the form of pulse width modulation (PWM), pulse frequency modulation (PFM) and pulse amplitude modulation (PAM).

In operation, a circuit output characteristic is measured on the secondary side of a switching mode power converter. In an exemplary application, the circuit output characteristic is the output voltage Vout. The secondary side controller generates a driving signal for controlling the secondary transistor while the primary side main transistor is OFF. The driving signal selectively turns ON and OFF the secondary transistor resulting in a coded train of voltage pulses across the secondary winding. The measured output voltage Vout is coded into the coded voltage pulse train. In some embodiments, the coded voltage pulse train is transmitted from the secondary winding to the auxiliary winding by magnetic coupling between the two windings. In other embodiments, the coded voltage pulse train is transmitted form the secondary winding to the auxiliary winding using the parasitic capacitance of either the transformer or the inherent capacitance of the printed circuit board across the isolation galvanic barrier, where the printed circuit board capacitance is due to the formation of the transformer and corresponding circuitry layout of the power converter components. The coded voltage pulse train is received and decoded by the primary controller. The primary controller identifies the measured output voltage Vout according to the decoded information and generates a driving signal corresponding to the identified output voltage Vout. The driving signal is converted to a DC level that is input as the voltage sense to a waveform analyzer. The waveform analyzer uses the input voltage sense to generate a driving signal for controlling the primary transistor and regulating the output voltage Vout.

In an alternative configuration, a bi-directional switch is used in place of the diode 116 and the transistor 118. A body diode of the bi-directional switch functions as the freewheeling diode 116. Control of the bi-directional switch is the same as the transistor 118 to enable a negative secondary current Isec.

Although the coded information within the coded voltage pulse train is described above as including information that identifies the output voltage Vout, the coded voltage pulse train can be alternatively modulated to include additional or alternative information. Such information includes, but is not limited to, a simple instruction to turn ON or OFF the main transistor, an indicator of a short circuit condition, or an indicator of a voltage out of regulation. Each type of information is represented by a separate coding.

In the embodiment described above, the predominate control functionality is performed by the primary side controller. In some embodiments, the predominate control functionality is instead performed by the second side controller. This configuration is particularly useful in those applications where the primary side voltages are high, such as 100-400V, and the secondary side voltages are lower, such as 20-40V. Circuits that process lower voltage signals are easier to implement as integrated circuits. Integration at higher voltages is extremely complex.

A power converter having predominate secondary side control correspondingly reduces the intelligent control on the primary side. Essentially, the primary side controller is configured as a responsive state machine that responds to signaling provided by the secondary side controller. In some embodiments, the primary side controller of the power converter in FIG. 4 is replaced by a modulating or driving circuit, such as a pulse width modulating (PWM) circuit, the output of which is input as the driving signal for the main switch. The fundamental functionality of the power converter having predominate secondary side control is the same as the power converter of FIG. 4 where processing is re-portioned from the primary side to the secondary side.

FIG. 6 illustrates a power converter according to an embodiment. The power converter 200 is configured to receive an unregulated DC voltage signal at an input node Vin and to provide a regulated output voltage Vout. Input voltage to the circuit may be unregulated DC voltage derived from an AC supply after rectification. The input voltage is typically filtered, such as via capacitor 202.

The power converter 200 is configured as a flyback converter. It is understood that the concepts described herein can be applied to alternatively configured switched mode converters including, but not limed to, a forward converter, a push-pull converter, a half-bridge converter, and a full-bridge converter. The power converter 200 includes an isolation transformer 204 having a primary winding P1 and a secondary winding S1. The primary winding P1 is electrically coupled to the input voltage Vin and a switch 206. A driving circuit includes a pulse width modulating (PWM) circuit 210. The switch 206 is coupled in series with the primary winding P1 of the transformer 204 and a resistor 212. The PWM circuit 210 is coupled to the switch 206 to turn the switch ON and OFF.

The power converter 200 further includes output circuitry coupled to the secondary winding S1 of the transformer 204. The output circuitry includes a freewheeling rectifier diode 216, a switch 218, a controller 220, and an output capacitor 226. The switch 218 is coupled in parallel to the diode 216. An anode of the diode 216 is coupled to a first terminal of the secondary winding. A cathode of the diode 216 is coupled to a first terminal of the output capacitor 226 and coupled to the output node Vout. The output capacitor 226 is coupled to the Vout node across an output load, represented by a resistor 228. The controller 220 is coupled to the switch 218 to turn the switch ON and OFF. The output circuitry also includes a sensing circuit configured to measure a circuit characteristic to be regulated such as an output voltage, an output current, and/or an output power. In this exemplary configuration and succeeding description, the power converter is described as sensing and regulating the output voltage Vout. In the exemplary configuration of FIG. 4, the sensing circuit includes a resistive voltage divider including the resistors 222 and 224 coupled in parallel to the capacitor 226 to measure a voltage across the capacitor 226. It is understood that an alternative sensing circuit can be used to measure the output voltage Vout. In general, the sensing circuit can be configured to use any conventional technique for determining the value of the regulated circuit characteristic.

The output characteristic, such as the voltage, current or power, is sensed, and the controller 220 compares the sensed output characteristic(s) with a predefined reference. The comparison results in a difference, or an error, that signifies an amount that the output is out of regulation. The controller 220 drives the switch 206 so as to generate a negative secondary current through the secondary winding S1, which results in a voltage pulse across the secondary winding 51. The switch 206 is driven so as to form a voltage pulse having a pulse width that represents the amount of error in the output characteristic.

The switch 206 and the switch 218 are each a suitable switching device. In an exemplary embodiment, the switch 206 and the switch 218 are each a n-type metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) device. Alternatively, any other semiconductor switching device known to a person of skill in the art can be substituted for the switch 206 and/or the switch 218. Subsequent description is based on an n-channel MOSFET.

The power converter 200 has a feedback loop that includes a magnetically coupled feedback circuit coupled to the secondary winding S1 of the transformer 204 and the PWM circuit 210. The magnetically coupled feedback circuit includes a diode 208, a capacitor 230, resistors 232 and 234 and an auxiliary winding 214. The auxiliary winding 214 is coupled in parallel to the series of resistors 232 and 234. The auxiliary winding 214 is also magnetically coupled to the secondary winding S1. When the current through the diode 216 is zero, the voltage across the secondary winding S1 is equal to the voltage across the auxiliary winding 114 if the turns ratio is 1:1, or otherwise proportional depending on the turns ratio. This relationship provides means for communicating the voltage pulse across the secondary winding S1 as a control signal to the primary side of the circuit. The value of the voltage across the secondary winding S1 is a function of the secondary current through the secondary winding S1. With the current through the diode 216 equal to zero, the transistor 218 is selectively turned ON and OFF by the controller 220. When the transistor 218 is ON, an alternative current path is formed from the charged capacitor 226 to the secondary winding S1. The alternative current path enables negative current flow through the secondary winding S1. The negative secondary current is sustained by the stored energy in the capacitor 226. In this manner, the controller 220 generates a driving signal that selectively turns the transistor 218 ON and OFF, thereby generating a voltage pulse signal across the secondary winding S1. The driving signal is configured such that the pulse width of the voltage pulse is modulated according to the compared difference between the measured output characteristic and a reference value. The voltage pulse signal is transmitted during a delay period that corresponds to the switch 206 OFF and the current of the diode 216 having dropped to zero. The delay period is implemented by the controller 220.

The auxiliary winding 214 is magnetically coupled to the secondary winding S1, and the voltage across the auxiliary winding 214 is equal to or proportional to the voltage across the secondary winding S1 when the current through the diode 216 is zero. As such, the voltage pulse signal is transmitted across the isolation galvanic barrier via the magnetically coupled auxiliary winding 214 and secondary winding S1.

The voltage pulse signal across the auxiliary winding 214 is measured when the transistor 206 is OFF and the current through the diode 216 equals zero. The voltage VA is proportional to the voltage across the auxiliary winding 214 and therefore represents the voltage pulse signal. The voltage VA is provided as an input to the PWM circuit 210, where the voltage VA represents the voltage pulse signal.

In operation, the output voltage, current or power is sensed, and the controller 220 compares the sensed output characteristic(s) with a predefined reference. The comparison results in a difference, or an error, that signifies an amount that the output is out of regulation. The controller 220 drives the switch 218 so as to generate a negative secondary current through the secondary winding S1, which results in a voltage pulse across the secondary winding S1. The switch 218 is driven so as to form a voltage pulse having a pulse width that represents the amount of error in the output characteristic. The pulse width fluctuates according to the error value. The negative secondary current is driven during a predetermined time cycle of the power converter main switching element 206 on the primary side. This predetermined time cycle corresponds to the period of the main switching cycle when the main switching element 206 is OFF and after the power has been delivered to the load, which corresponds to the positive secondary current dropping to zero. Also during the predetermined time cycle, the voltage pulse is transmitted across the galvanic isolation barrier and received by the driving circuit on the primary side. The PWM circuit 210 generates a driving signal modulated according to the voltage pulse and drives the main switch 206 to regulate the output characteristic. The main operates with a duty cycle controlled by the secondary side controller 220 by way of the voltage pulse. In the absence of the voltage pulse transmitted through the transformer, the PWM block generates a pulse width modulated driving signal having a predetermined duty cycle set by an input clock signal. The voltage pulse functions to adjust or maintain this predetermined duty cycle. Additionally, the voltage pulse can be used for functionality other than regulating means. For example, the voltage pulse can be used to turn the main switch ON or OFF immediately due to monitored circuit conditions including, but not limited to, over voltage condition, under voltage condition, and over temperature condition.

Conceptually, the power converter is configured for bi-directional energy conversion. In a first direction, there is a primary side to secondary side energy conversion across the galvanic isolation barrier. Energy is transmitted from AC main through the primary of the power transformer to the secondary. Energy at the secondary is rectified and passed to the load as output power. In a second direction, energy is transmitted from the secondary side to the primary side as a control signal for modulating a duty cycle of the main switch and regulating the output. The energy transfer is the second direction is for signaling, data, and/or control means, not power transfer. To generate the proper control signal, the load condition is observed by a supervisory circuitry integrated into a smart rectifier, measured against reference values to identify an error and prepare for transmission to the primary side driving circuit for appropriate adjustment to compensate for loss of regulation. A secondary side controller, switch, and diode can be used to implement the smart rectifier. The supervised circuitry holds the error information and when energy transmission in the first direction is completed converts the error information into switching means, such as in the form of a fluctuated pulse width signal. The fluctuated pulse width signal activates the smart rectifier into negative secondary current and transmits the sampled data through the transformer. A driving circuit modulates the main switch driving signal according to the received pulse width signal. In some embodiments, the driving circuit functions as a responsive state machine that inputs the pulse width signal and modulates the output main switch driving signal according to the input pulse width signal. In other embodiments, the driving circuit includes a primary side controller that reconstructs the signal, uses the pulse width to identify the error information, and makes the decision to change timing characteristics of the main switch.

In the context of the bi-directional energy conversion, the transformer can be viewed from a master-slave standpoint. When the main switch is ON and the secondary side switch is OFF and energy is transferred as power across the transformer, as in the first direction of energy conversion, the primary side of the circuit functions as a master circuit to the transformer. When the main switch is OFF and the secondary side switch is ON and energy is transferred as control means across the transformer, as in the second direction of energy conversion, the secondary side of the circuit functions as a master circuit to the transformer.

Although the energy conversions in the first and second directions are preferred to be serial, it is also contemplated that the energy conversions are concurrent in both directions. In a concurrent energy conversion, the switching frequency of the secondary side switch is distinctly higher than the switching frequency of the primary side main switch.

The driving circuit for the main switch is implemented above as a PWM circuit. Alternatively, system functional performance can be in the form of pulse width modulation (PWM), pulse frequency modulation (PFM) and pulse amplitude modulation (PAM).

The present application has been described in terms of specific embodiments incorporating details to facilitate the understanding of the principles of construction and operation of the power converter. Many of the components shown and described in the various figures can be interchanged to achieve the results necessary, and this description should be read to encompass such interchange as well. As such, references herein to specific embodiments and details thereof are not intended to limit the scope of the claims appended hereto. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that modifications can be made to the embodiments chosen for illustration without departing from the spirit and scope of the application. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of controlling a switching mode power converter comprising: a. configuring a switching mode power converter comprising a transformer, an output circuit coupled to a secondary winding of the transformer, a first switch coupled to a primary winding of the transformer and a driving circuit coupled to the first switch, wherein the output circuit comprises a second switch coupled to the secondary winding of the transformer and a controller coupled to the second switch; b. measuring an output characteristic of the output circuit; c. generating a driving signal by the controller and applying the driving signal to the second switch, wherein the driving signal is modulated based on the measured output characteristic, and applying the driving signal to the second switch results in a voltage pulse across the secondary winding, the voltage pulse comprising a pulse width that corresponds to a magnitude of an out of regulation output characteristic; d. transmitting the voltage pulse through the transformer to the driving circuit; e. modulating a driving signal generated by the driving circuit according to the voltage pulse; and g. driving the first switch using the driving signal to regulate the output characteristic.
 2. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining for each switching cycle of the power converter when a power delivery from a primary side of the transformer to the output circuit is completed, and when the power delivery is completed then generating the driving signal and transmitting the voltage pulse.
 3. The method of claim 2 wherein the power delivery is completed when a current through the secondary winding drops to zero.
 4. The method of claim 2 wherein the power delivery from the primary side to the output circuit corresponds to the first switch being OFF, and generating the driving signal and transmitting the voltage pulse are performed while the first switch is OFF.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein the driving circuit comprises a pulse width modulation circuit and the driving signal comprises a pulse width modulated voltage signal.
 6. The method of claim 5 wherein the voltage pulse received by the pulse width modulation circuit modulates a duty cycle of the pulse width modulated voltage signal output from the pulse width modulation circuit.
 7. The method of claim 1 wherein the output characteristic is one or more of an output voltage, an output current, and an output power of the power converter.
 8. The method of claim 1 wherein the voltage pulse is formed across the secondary winding while the second switch is ON which enables a negative secondary current through the secondary winding.
 9. The method of claim 8 wherein enabling the negative secondary current comprises enabling an alternative current path from an output capacitor in the output circuit to the secondary winding.
 10. The method of claim 1 wherein the secondary winding is magnetically coupled to an auxiliary winding, and the auxiliary winding is coupled to the driving circuit, further wherein transmitting the voltage pulse comprises using the magnetic coupling between the secondary winding and the auxiliary winding to transmit the voltage pulse from the secondary winding to the driving circuit.
 11. The method of claim 1 wherein transmitting the voltage pulse comprises using a parasitic capacitance between a primary side and a secondary side of the power converter.
 12. The method of claim 11 wherein the parasitic capacitance comprises a parasitic capacitance of the transformer.
 13. The method of claim 11 wherein the parasitic capacitance comprises an inherent capacitance of a printed circuit board onto which the power converter is assembled, wherein the inherent capacitance is a result of a component layout on either side of an isolation galvanic barrier.
 14. The method of claim 1 wherein the first switch comprises a first transistor and the second switch comprises a second transistor.
 15. A switching mode power converter comprising: a. a transformer having a primary winding coupled to an input supply voltage and a secondary winding; b. a first switch coupled in series to the primary winding; c. a driving circuit coupled to the switch, wherein the driving circuit is configured to drive the first switch ON and OFF; d. a second switch coupled in series to the secondary winding; e. a controller coupled to the second switch, wherein the second controller is configured to turn the second switch ON and OFF; f. a sensing circuit coupled to the secondary winding and the controller, wherein the sensing circuit is configured to sense an output characteristic of the power converter, wherein the controller is configured to generate a second switch driving signal and apply the second switch driving signal to the second switch, wherein the second switch driving signal is modulated based on the measured output characteristic, and applying the second switch driving signal to the second switch results in a voltage pulse across the secondary winding, the voltage pulse comprising a pulse width that corresponds to a magnitude of an out of regulation output characteristic, further wherein the transformer is configured as a signal transmitter to transmit the voltage pulse from the secondary winding to a primary side of the transformer, wherein the driving circuit is configured to generate a first switch driving signal modulated according to the voltage pulse and to drive the first switch using the first switch driving signal to regulate the output characteristic.
 16. The power converter of claim 15 wherein the controller and the sensing circuit are configured to determine for each switching cycle of the power converter when a power delivery from a primary side of the transformer to the output circuit is completed, and when the power delivery is completed then the controller is configured to generate the second switch driving signal.
 17. The power converter of claim 16 wherein the power delivery is completed when a current through the secondary winding drops to zero.
 18. The power converter of claim 16 wherein the power delivery from the primary side to the output circuit corresponds to the first switch being OFF, and the controller is configured to generate the driving signal while the first switch is OFF.
 19. The power converter of claim 15 wherein the driving circuit comprises a pulse width modulation circuit and the driving signal comprises a pulse width modulated voltage signal.
 20. The power converter of claim 19 wherein pulse width modulation circuit is configured to modulate a duty cycle of the pulse width modulated voltage signal output from the pulse width modulation circuit based on the received voltage pulse.
 21. The power converter of claim 15 wherein the output characteristic is one or more of an output voltage, an output current, and an output power of the power converter.
 22. The power converter of claim 15 further comprising an auxiliary winding coupled to the driving circuit, wherein the auxiliary winding is magnetically coupled to the secondary winding.
 23. The power converter of claim 22 wherein the transformer is configured to transmit the voltage pulse from the secondary winding to the auxiliary winding using the magnetic coupling between the secondary winding and the auxiliary winding.
 24. The power converter of claim 22 wherein the transformer is configured to transmit the voltage pulse from the secondary winding to the auxiliary winding using a parasitic capacitance between a primary side and a secondary side of the power converter.
 25. The power converter of claim 24 wherein the parasitic capacitance comprises a parasitic capacitance of the transformer.
 26. The power converter of claim 24 wherein the parasitic capacitance comprises an inherent capacitance of a printed circuit board onto which the power converter is assembled, wherein the inherent capacitance is a result of a component layout on either side of an isolation galvanic barrier.
 27. The power converter of claim 15 wherein the first switch comprises a first transistor and the second switch comprises a second transistor.
 28. The power converter of claim 15 wherein the sensing circuit comprises a voltage divider circuit.
 29. The power converter of claim 15 further comprising a diode coupled in parallel to the second switch and an output capacitor coupled in series to the diode, wherein the diode is configured to enable current flow from the secondary winding to the output capacitor when forward-biased.
 30. The power converter of claim 29 wherein when the second switch is ON, an alternative current path is formed between the output capacitor and the secondary winding of the transformer, further wherein a negative secondary current flows from the output capacitor to the secondary winding via the alternative current path, thereby forming the voltage pulse across the secondary winding.
 31. The power converter of claim 30 wherein the negative secondary current is generated as discharge from the output capacitor when the alternative current path is formed.
 32. The power converter of claim 15 wherein the power converter is configured as one of a flyback-type power converter circuit, a forward-type power converter circuit, a push-pull-type power converter circuit, a half-bridge-type power converter circuit, and a full-bridge-type power converter circuit. 